Fayetteville Speaks: Beer price hike?
Arkansas Flyers, have you ever wondered what is really going on during our State Legislature? Have you thought about calling your Senator when you disagreed or even agreed with an upcoming bill? Well, I have such a Bill that warrants some attention. It is called House Bill 1807 and will be before a Senate committee on Tuesday, March 24.
This bill is government attempting to dictate prices that a private company can charge. Ironically, if the bill becomes law, its impact will be to actually increase the price of beer for consumers. Should this bill become law, consider this: In states that have passed similar “price posting” requirements as those in HB 1807, when challenged in court, the law has always been found unconstitutional. Why would the government want to raise the price of something like beer in these tough economic times, especially when such a law will likely cause the state to go to court, costing taxpayers an unnecessary lawsuit?
What you can do: Call the Senate switchboard at 501-682-2902 and tell your Senator you want them to vote AGAINST HB 1807. The more calls received showing the voters concerns, the better! The call takes 5 seconds; you give them your name, phone number, your home town and your senator. Please take a few seconds out of your day today or Monday and use your voice against this bill.
Here is a link to the Arkansas Senators! Find yours and call 501-682-2902.
Rynne Roark
Fayetteville
Fayetteville Speaks is your chance to express opinions and ideas for possible publication here on the Fayetteville Flyer. The opinions expressed here are not those of the Fayetteville Flyer. See our submissions page for full guidelines.
Comments
The Fayetteville Flyer doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy.
Lankford
March 20, 2009
Could you get any more vague in your description of the bill?
Matthew Petty
March 20, 2009
I’m all for civic engagement, so thanks for trying to get people to call their representatives.
But you’ve got to do more than tell me it’s convenient. You’ve got to convince me it’s worth it. Can you tell us a little more about this bill?
Rynnedog
March 20, 2009
Thanks for the comments. FF has a limit of 500 words in LTE so while trying to get the message out I was also respecting the editorial policies of this site.
Here is more information on the bill:
This bill has a requirement that states if a brewer provides a price discount to ANY wholesaler, it must provide that discount to ALL wholesalers.
Obviously, wholesalers are independent businesses. Some are efficient, some are not. Some sell a lot of product, some don’t.
Just like any of us, the brewers adjust prices where they think they can help the wholesaler move more beer. With that requirement in the bill, the brewers can’t afford to offer the discounted price to all wholesalers, so they will be forced to INCREASE THE PRICE to the level the least efficient wholesalers pay for beer.
It’s a backroom attempt by some wholesalers to increase their profits through legislation, consumers be damned.
The constitutional issue has been stricken in all 7 states that have heard it, most recently a COSTCO case on the west coast. The courts have found it to be in violation of the Sherman Act and anti consumer, anti competitive.
Todd
March 20, 2009
Good point, Rynnedog. I think the 500 word limit is a bad idea for this new section. After all, there’s no paper involved here so space isn’t really an issue. I will revise our policy and I apologize if you didn’t have enough space to get your point across.
Lessie
March 20, 2009
HB1807, the price-fixing bill, is still in the Senate committee on State Agencies & Governmental Affairs, of which Sen. Bill Pritchard is a member. It passed the House 63-25 on March 6, with our local legislators going both ways, so to speak. Reps Jon Woods and Jim House voted FOR; Reps Lindsley Smith and Uvalde Lindsey voted NO; Rep Mark Martin did not vote.